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A tough new smoking ban was introduced in China's capital city Beijing on June the 1st. It coincides with World No Tobacco Day. The World Health Organization (WHO) welcomed it. The law bans smoking in all indoor public places, on public transport and in workplaces. Anyone who smokes in these places will get a big fine. Restaurants will have a big part to play in making sure the ban works. Restaurant owners will get a heavy fine if people smoke in their restaurants. The public is also being asked to report anyone who breaks the law and smokes in public.

A WHO spokesperson said: "We applauded Beijing for its strong and determined leadership in protecting the health of its people by making public places smoke-free. We are delighted to be formally recognising the Beijing Municipal Government." There are still hundreds of millions of smokers in China. The country is the world's biggest tobacco producer and has the most smokers. There are around 300 million smokers in China. This is almost the same size as the population of the USA. More than one million Chinese die each year from diseases caused by smoking.